Forced to play the extended waiting game, Paul Daley and manager Wad Alameddine of Fight Management Limited sprung into action.

If Strikeforce parent company Zuffa LLC had no plans in the near term for the 29-year-old British slugger, it was time to forge their own way ahead. And it’s precisely what they did.

“(We were) just trying to get me a fight date while I was over at Strikeforce, and nothing was really coming back,” Daley (29-12-2 MMA, 0-0 BFC) told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio). “They (Zuffa) had nothing really planned out for me, so me and my management approached them and said, ‘Look, if you’ve got nothing planned out for me, if you don’t see some clear fights in the future for me, then I’d appreciate it if you let me go.’

“And they understood that. It was amicable. And they let me go.”

Bellator Fighting Championships and CEO Bjorn Rebney wasted little time in securing the services of Daley, who inked a multi-fight contract.

“Bjorn’s a very passionate guy about MMA, and I can see where he wants to go with this sport,” Daley said. “I’m just happy he offered me the chance to be a part of it.”

Daley, who has fought for more than 15 different promotions since his professional career began in 2003, knows a good opportunity when he sees it.

“I’ve been looking at Bellator while I’ve been with other promotions,” he said. “I’ve been looking at the way they’ve been developing, and obviously with the Viacom acquisition, you can only expect more from the promotion.”

Viacom purchased a majority stake in the promotion back in October and settled into their spot on MTV2. In 2013, it’ll make the transition to Spike TV, the former long-time home base of the UFC.

Daley will debut at Bellator 72, a season-seven “Summer Series” event that takes place July 20 at USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Fla. The main card airs on MTV2 while Spike.com streams the prelims.

“I’m just looking at opponents now,” he said. “I’ve got to keep it (the list) top secret, but I’m looking at the e-mail now from (Bellator matchmaker) Sam (Caplan), and I’m just sifting through them.”

He revealed the list was composed of around 10 names, one of which was Japanese veteran Yoshiyuki Yoshida.

Daley will look to bounce back in the win column following his March 2012 split-decision loss to Kazuo Misaki. While he may only be 6-4 in his past 10 contests, he’s officially 0-0 with his new employer.

And if victorious in his initial outing, he’s a virtual lock for entry into the upcoming Bellator season-seven welterweight tournament.

Daley hasn’t ruled out the possibility of taking a second fight prior to the beginning of the tournament either, in order to remain active at a steady rate. He gets rather anxious with an empty schedule, as we’ve learned.

There will be new beginnings on the home front in the coming months as well. Daley and his girlfriend will welcome their first child, a boy named Tai, into the world in September.

Perfect timing.

“It’s giving me a new focus,” Daley said. “I’m doing everything with a little more intensity now because I’ve got someone else there to provide for. It’s a really, really motivating factor for me.

MMAjunkie.com Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia, MMAjunkie.com lead staff reporter John Morgan and producer Brian “Goze” Garcia. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.

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